If you've been a fan of this blog for any length of time, you know that I believe in taking time to reflect and think about your direction and how you're living your life. So far I've worked through a couple of workbooks that have helped me look at everything and I can feel the effects are working already on a subconscious level.
But do you want to know what is helping me the most? It's a tip I heard on a podcast months ago from Dan Miller, author of 48 Days to the Work You Love (hey, maybe that will be one of the books we read in the Secret OWL Society book club!). Dan talks about how at the end of every year, he looks at all the different projects and activities that take up his time, and he makes the decision to release 20% (I believe it's 20 percent, I'm not 100% sure, lol) of what's on his plate.
Now, the reason Dan does this is so that he can create room for higher level opportunities to come into his life as a result of making space for it and being intentional about it. When he talked about the amazing things he's been able to do this year as a result of doing less of something else, I was blown away.
Think about it. It makes too much sense. The reason why we get stuck is because we're holding onto things that take up all our time and energy so that there's no room for us to focus on anything else, anything better. There's a couple of quotes I love that relate to this:
When you hold on too tight on what's good, you miss out on what's great.
Where focus goes, energy flows.
What you focus on expands.
If you keep on doing the same thing, you're going to keep getting the same results. The challenge is this: you can't wait for that great, higher-level thing to show up before you let go of something you're doing now. You have to LET GO FIRST and that's the scary part. It's like hanging in mid-air with nothing under your feet. I've been there, done that. But once you do that, once you create that space in your life and in your MIND, you give something better a chance to rush in. And the other challenge is that what you need to let go of can be a perfectly good thing. It can be something you enjoy, something that makes good money. You just have to ask yourself, "Is this something I should keep doing?" We behave as if we need someone else's permission before we can make a change in our lives. Quit waiting.
Happy and successful people know how to move on to the next thing again and again and again. They know that many of the things that come into our lives are not meant to become a permanent part of our lives. They recognize when the season of a relationship, project, business, or job is over. Part of taking 100% responsibility for your life is making these kinds of decisions as soon as you become aware of the need to make them. Don't wait for outside circumstances to force you into a corner where you'd have no choice but to make a decision. Develop the ability to see where you want your life to be 1, 5, 10 years from now and ask yourself, "Is this use of my time the best use of my time now?"
Start valuing your time more because it's running out. Believe that you can always be doing something bigger and better than what you're doing right now - or at least something more in harmony with your values and your goals.
So, what do you know you need to let go of in order to MOVE ON and give yourself the time, energy and mental freedom to step into your potential next year? Figure it out now, make some decisions, get intentional, and GO FOR THE GREAT. We can do it!
I first stumbled on Dr. Who in my first (and only) semester in college, but it was the episode with the lethal mannequins and I was just like, "...what?" Haha.
